nessreader: CTHT is another medieval-set, multiple generation, religous institution novel, about a minor convent in England, sprawling over multiple generations and giving a sense of time passing, lightly touching on the lives of the nuns, but with the institution as the main character.… (more)

It's amazing the range of strong opinions found here on this book. "The writing is abominable;" "the writing is crystalline." "The characters are wooden puppets;" "the characters are living breathing people." Even "the historical research is great;" "the historical research is faulty and clumsily presented."

Well, put me on the five-star side, folks. I loved this book!

Yes, it's long. But it is full of action and interesting plot lines, and there are long passages of tremendous, page-devouring suspense. To me, a book that is this long yet has this much sustained narrative drive is miraculous.

Yes, the characters are types: the godly monk, the nefarious bishop, the dispossessed princess, the solid family man, the boy genius artist, the wild witch of the forest. Yet Follett has a knack for turning prototypes into real-seeming characters by introducing complexity. The godly monk is also a shrewd schemer (who consistently questions whether he is doing God's will or his own); the orphaned princess is also a driven, feisty merchant (yet at times her iron will fails and she falls into despondency); the boy genius is torn between his devotion to his mental life and art and his need for the women in his life.

Yes, the writing is simple and straightforward. To me this is a great strength. Follett not only lays out everything his characters are seeing and feeling right on the surface, but, when necessary, he blatantly states the point he wants the reader to get. I think this prose style is a key to Follett's popularity. It keeps the focus relentlessly on the story (and not on the writing). It also allows him to communicate great intensity and complexity of emotion in a way that readers at all levels of sophistication can appreciate. This is a clear, formidable prose style that aspiring writers who yearn for popularity would do well to emulate.

Finally, some have objected to the 'false climax' that occurs 90 pages before the end of the book. The story then picks up some 15 years later and introduces a whole new plot line. I too found this a bit off-putting, until the very end when Follett makes clear how the events in this section tie together the entire story and knit it to the actual historical changes that took place during those years. At this point, you see how the whole narrative exemplifies the century in which the story occurs. At this point, in other words, the book rises to the level of great historical fiction.

So, come on, people! Don't hate this book for being popular. Enjoy it as the masterpiece of popular fiction that it is! ( )

Historical fiction you can cut your detail and connection loving teeth on. This was the first Follett I've read and it made me come back for more, and more, and more. I love interlocking character perspectives so it was a bit like literary crack. ( )

I would NEVER read a book abt medevil times, or cathedral building or monks the Englsih churches and monks. Oprah reviewed this and it did not matter to me, BUT she read emails from her viewers that read this and that is why I tried this book.I would recommend anyone reading it, to get thru the first 40 pages, that is what was suggested to me.This story had me in its grip from page 10! I missed a half day of work to read this!I read every minute I was home and at lunchtime break!This is a compelling story of love/hate,wealthy vs poor,the class system of England and the Church. Most of all is is a story of survival,resiliency and love and respect.I do recommend this book to anyone that would normally not read this type of subject matter.It is well written!It is a story that will stay with me for sometime to come. ( )

Great literature? Of course not. To begin with, the plot relies far too heavily on coincidence, and the characters tend to be chiseled into predictability. The writing depends heavily on dialogue - and although it's well-done dialogue, it's the stuff of escapism, not of the ages. But so what? It's a long, rich and rewarding story, full of glory and violence told in the tradition of medieval troubadors. Few among us could turn away from a tale that begins: ''The small boys came early to the hanging.''

On the night of 25 November 1120 the White Ship set out for England and foundered off Barfleur with all hands save one. ... The vessel was the latest thing in marine transport, fitted with all the devices known to the shipbuilder of the time. ... The notoriety of this wreck is due to the very large number of distinguished persons on board; beside the king's son and heir, there were two royal bastards, several earls and barons, and most of the royal household ... its historical significance is that it left Henry without an obvious heir ... its ultimate result was the disputed succession and the period of anarchy which followed Henry's death.-A. L. Poole,From Doomsday Book to Magna Carta

Dedication

To Marie-Claire, the apple of my eye

First words

PrefaceThe small boys came early to the hanging.

Chapter 1In a broad valley, at the foot of a sloping hillside, beside a clear bubbling stream, Tom was building a house.

Quotations

The baby cried, and the sound tugged at his heartstrings like a well-loved hymn. p.89

Wikipedia in English (1)

From Publishers WeeklySet in 12th-century England, the narrative concerns the building of a cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge. The ambitions of three men merge, conflict and collide through 40 years of social and political upheaval as internal church politics affect the progress of the cathedral and the fortunes of the protagonists. "Follett has written a novel that entertains, instructs and satisfies on a grand scale," judged PW. Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Haiku summary

▾Book descriptions

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▾Library descriptions

Adventure saga of 12th century England, from a stone mason whose dream is to build a glorious cathedral to a man of God in a web of dangerous political intrigue.